Chapter 26

Over The Edge

"Sabertooth's Sting just spoke—or did he mouth something?" Chapati asked abruptly.

"It's hard to tell."

Lector looked at Vóreia and Frosch questioningly. "Did either of you catch what Sting-kun said?"

Vóreia frowned and shook her head. "Something must be up with the Lacrima Vision."

"Fro thinks so too," Frosch said.

High above them, two members of Imperial Snow typed away at a Surveillance Lacrima. "Those poor suckers," Hacker One snickered. "The things that are possible through Illusion Magic."

"Hijacking the Lacrima Vision Camera isn't an easy feat," Hacker Two agreed. "But it helps that we released a camera of our own into the fray, making it so that it sends a signal that disrupts the other visual lacrima. So the only ones who know what's really going on behind the scenes is us."

"Even now, the Magic Council is trying to figure out how Cobra of Oración Seis was murdered in his cell."

A blue eye widened in shock, something that did not pass the White Dragon Slayer's sight. His eyebrows shot up. "Wait, unless...You are?"

Glacia shook her head profusely, both hands pulling her cap down. Sting smirked. "Give it up. I know it's you, Glacia."

His hand grabbed the top of Glacia's cap, but her strong grip prevented Sting from removing the headgear entirely.

Two shots rang through the war zone; two bullets zipped past and grazed Sting's gloved hand. The Dragon Slayer hissed, releasing the cap so he could nurse his hand. The cap remained crumpled from where Sting grabbed it. "Where the hell—?" A third bullet exploded at his feet, forcing him to jump back. Sting's eyes found the source of the bullets: The mysterious Mermaid Heel witch masked by a motorcycle helmet. The dark visor blocked any clue of her appearance.

The woman pointed a pistol at Sting, and the White Dragon Slayer couldn't help but feel like he'd seen that gun from somewhere.

Glacia recognized an opening when given to her. She ran away from the two, fixing her hat along the way. She looked back and waved her right hand at the mysterious Mermaid Heel witch as if to say thank you. The woman simply gave her a thumbs-up. But then she frowned, something that went unnoticed by Sting and the audience because of the helmet.

Niebel's feet pounded against the rough terrain. He glanced back, panicking when he spotted the other Imperial Guardians in hot pursuit. His breath came out in short pants; he was tired, but he couldn't allow the Dragon Lacrima to come into their possession. Not after the way they tricked Niebel into cooperating.

"Ahem." Avian appeared before him, blocking his path. Niebel tried to backtrack, only to find that Jigumo blocked his rear.

"Niebel, Niebel," Mizuno sighed tiredly. The other Imperial Guardians managed to surround the mutinous Imperial Guardian in a triangular formation. "Why did you have to do this? We were going to keep our word; we were going to leave a piece of Glacia's corpse for you to bury."

Niebel glowered at Mizuno in disgust but said nothing.

"Hey pretty boy, you're not helping the situation," Jigumo called.

"At least I'm not the one who went and ruined her eye," the mirror mage shot.

"Oh hush," Avian bristled. "Niebel," he said gently, trying to ease the rising tension by some degree. "Try to understand why we had to resort to this. We had no choice: that kind of magic would destroy a normal mage from the inside within days. It's a wonder how Glacia managed to keep it in for years until she finally snapped. Her previous life proves that."

This time, Niebel held Avian's gaze. Still, no words came from his mouth.

Avian sighed. "I know. You're so angry with us, you don't even want to speak. But when we revived her, didn't you swear to keep her safe from everything that threatened to hurt her? Was that not the reason, no matter how much she longed for it, we kept her inside, safe from the dangers of the outside world? And we actually let her out for fresh air, weren't you the one that accompanied her so nothing would happen?"

Niebel stared at the ground, unable to meet Avian's eyes. The other Imperial Guardians shared a look with each other, both thinking that they had Niebel cornered.

~Flashback~

"Are you kidding me?" Jigumo slammed his palm on the polished wood table.

"That is mahogany, I'll have you know!" A hotel worker cried in protest.

"And this is a banana spider, I'll have you know!" Jigumo threatened to fling Olivia across the room, but the employee scurried away. He turned his attention back to Niebel. "Every other day she wanted to go outside, but on the one day that we let her, she refuses?"

"But...Sissy was crying," Niebel mumbled.

Mizuno frowned, turning his head towards Avian. "Wouldn't that mean last year's memories are finally returning?" he inquired.

"Yes...but something bothers me." Avian sipped his tea as calmly as he could. "Before we came here under the guise of a subdivision, Princess Glacia's memories were incomplete, but she was content. If her memories are restored now, then just being here in Crocus must have been the catalyst."

"That's not surprising," Sasori deduced. "After all, this is the place where she died."

"...I can hear them."

"Excuse me?"

Niebel raised his head, eyes flaring. "I know what they're saying about Sissy in the city. They're saying that she's a cold-hearted murderer. But if she's a killer, then what does that make them?"

"...Imbeciles," Jigumo snorted. "So you're saying that the princess doesn't want to go outside because of public opinion."

"No," Niebel said bluntly. His hands balled up into fists. "Not just that...but them."

"'Them?'" Mizuno repeated curiously. "Who, Mermaid Heel?"

"You self-centered idiot!" He growled. Niebel slammed his fist on the table, causing Mizuno and Avian to flinch back into their seats. The polished wood furniture split in two; frost formed where his clenched hand struck. Jigumo looked at Sasori, whose eyes displayed relish at the scene.

"Are you enjoying this?" Jigumo asked incredulously.

"I hope you're going to pay for that table!" The employee from before shrilled. "That was mahogany!"

"I hope you can pay for a funeral! This is a banana spider!" Jigumo mimed launching Olivia at the man.

"Why would I refer to Sissy's guild?" Niebel yelled furiously. "Vóreia rejected Sissy! I know what will happen if I let her out! He'll hurt Sissy!"

"He?" Avian questioned tentatively, not wanting to incur Niebel's anger.

"He's the one who will hurt Sissy the most once she steps foot outside," Niebel snarled.

Niebel shook his head slowly, uncertainty in his eyes. Avian frowned. "Now you're uncertain of your own words? But you said it with so much conviction last week." Even so, Niebel made a sign of disagreement.

"Hey, let me try, Airhead." Avian shot Jigumo a dirty look while the spider master took the lead. "Okay, so I get that you hate me because I injured Glacia, but it's not like Sasori didn't do the same. Besides, those will be the only wounds she has to take if she returns to us! You said it yourself, Nieb! She'll hurt more just by being out here! All because of him!"

"…" Niebel met Jigumo's mismatched eyes, confusion and doubt evident in that visible blue eye.

"So what do you say, Nieb?" Jigumo stretched an arm out to Niebel; his hand waited for Niebel to place the cocoon in it. "Give us the Dragon Lacrima, and we'll let you off with a slap on the wrist. We'll even protect Glacia for the rest of this game."

A blue eye narrowed in distrust. Shifting the cocoon around so that he held it under his arm, Niebel lifted his left fist and stuck his pinky up. Mizuno raised his eyebrows while Jigumo sighed. "Yes, I swear by my pinky," he said, copying the young Imperial Guardian's actions.

Keeping eye contact with Jigumo, Niebel took one step closer, then another. When he was a foot away, he stopped. The Imperial Guardian of the West raised a questioning eyebrow. Niebel raised himself on his toes; that's when Jigumo remembered that Niebel barely came up to his navel. So Jigumo bent his knees so that he could be level with Niebel.

Niebel took another tentative step forward, holding the cocoon out. Just before it could pass into Jigumo's hand, Niebel hurled it over his head.

"What the—?" The Imperial Guardian of the North clambered onto Jigumo's shoulders and launched himself into the air. As he landed beside the cocoon, Niebel hurriedly grabbed the woven shell and dashed off, fixing the cap.

"...We taught that boy too well," Avian commented.

"...Was it just me, or did Niebel seem a bit fishy?" Mizuno asked. "Not once did he say a word and he used his left hand to make the pinky promise."

The Imperial Guardian of the East waved a hand dismissively. "He had no choice. Niebel used his right arm to hold the cocoon, remember?"

"Yes, but Niebel's right-handed. And Princess Glacia always uses her left hand," Mizuno pointed out.

"Airhead, will you explain to Pretty Boy why—no matter what hand Niebel uses to pinky swear—it's still Niebel," Jigumo barked.

Avian huffed angrily at Jigumo's nickname for him but complied. He opened his mouth—

'You idiots!' The three Imperial Guardians flinched when an angry voice ripped through their thoughts. 'Can't you see they're trying to confuse us? The boy you just let get away was clearly Niebel!'

"You sure about that?" Mizuno said gingerly, rubbing his temples.

'Glacia's left-handed, but only Niebel would instigate something so simple as a pinky promise!' Sasori chided. 'Clearly he was trying to trick us, hoping we would be so thick as to believe that he was Glacia. But he forgot that Glacia kept pinky oaths, never starting them!'

"Niebel Glacien..." Jigumo twitched irritably, his hands flexing like he was itching to strangle someone. "You do realize—this means war!"

Laxus and Jura sized each other up, with the latter wondering if he could survive against the Wizard Saint after witnessing how easily he defeated the Lightning God Slayer.

Ooba Babasaama smiled, her wrinkles etched with pride as she spun her index fingers around. "Time to throw in the towel, Makarov. During your guild's seven-year absence, Jura has risen to the fifth most powerful mage of the Ten Wizard Saints."

Makarov's head grew in size as he yelled, "I have complete faith that Laxus will defeat Jura, Ooba!"

"Er, yes, that is true," Chapati said. "But don't forget that Jura is a shadow compared to the four above him."

A vein throbbed in Ooba's temple as she pointed her finger at Chapati and spun him furiously. "You shall refrain from speaking their names or you'll spin in the corner!"

"Eh?!"

Ooba regained her composure and added, "Those four from Ishval are like deities. It's not fair to compare any mortal to them. There's no shame in Jura being the most powerful human of the Ten Wizard Saints."

"An all-out match with you is something I have looked forward to for quite some time," the Wizard Saint said, turning his attention to the lightning mage. "Makarov-dono's—"

"Whoa whoa whoa." Laxus shrugged off his fur-lined coat and let it fall around his feet. "Stop right there. At this very moment, you're not some geezer with a pretentious title...and I'm not anyone's grandson," he said, meeting Jura's eyes. "We're just two men."

Jura smiled. "Your eyes speak volumes."

Laxus stood back, lightning crackling around him. Suddenly, he surged forward, as fast as the element he was surrounded in. But just as fast, Jura delivered a hand chop to the back of Laxus' head. The earth cracked, tiny bits of dirt flew as he hit the ground. The crowd and Fairy Tail gasped, shell-shocked at the sight of Laxus struck down by Jura.

"One...shotted...again..." Chapati collapsed in his chair as Ooba stopped spinning him, but he was so unbalanced, his chair toppled over, with him in it.

"I am without speech," Yajima admitted.

"That's Jura," Ooba declared with glee. "The pride of Lamia Scale."

"The world is a vast place," Jura said to his immobile adversary. "And there is always someone higher up on the food chain."

"...No shit," Laxus grunted as he got back up, much to the surprise of Jura. "But if you get too complacent standing on that perch—" Suddenly, Laxus jumped to his feet and delivered a sharp uppercut to his chin, making Jura fall back. "The hunter becomes the hunted!"

"WHAT?!" Ooba Babasaama yelled, her eyes bulging out in shock.

"No way..." Yuka gasped, utterly fazed by the fact that anyone could stand against Jura.

"Jura's being pushed back," Sherry breathed.

"Ooh!" Fairy Tail cheered, feeling the odds turn for them.

"Go, Laxus!" Evergreen screamed.

"YEAH!" Freed yelled at the top of his lungs.

"Get some!" Bickslow cheered.

Jura turned his head, a smirk on his face as he landed on his feet. Seemingly unaffected by the hit, the Wizard Saint threw off his coat too.

This would not end well.

"Sky God's Boreas!" Niebel rushed out of the way as black wind flew his way. Chelia glared at Niebel as she floated down. "You are the one who mocked Wendy!"

Niebel held up a finger, requesting a moment when Chelia sent more black wind at him. He hugged the cocoon close with his right arm as he placed his left hand on the cap. But the God Slayer's attacks pushed him back until they knocked him off his feet. His back hit the surface of a rock as Chelia advanced on the Imperial Guardian.

"Anyone who hurts my friends has to answer to me!" Chelia shouted. "Sky God's Bellow!"

A black tornado burst out of Chelia's mouth. Niebel couldn't avoid it in time, forcing him to take the full brunt of Chelia's attack. The wind kicked up a dust cloud on impact.

"What's going on? Niebel, the overconfident Dragon Slayer who handled Wendy-tan with ease, can't lift a finger before Chelia-tan! Chelia-tan, make sure to teach him a lesson!" Chapati added, eyes burning with a fire.

"Well, Niebel is a Dragon Slayer while Chelia's a God Slayer," Yajima pointed out. "There's a vast gap in their abilities. But I don't think it's because he can't attack. More like he won't attack. It might have something to do with the object he's holding."

"Show him no mercy, Chelia!" Ooba ordered, spinning her finger in circles at the Lacrima Vision.

The hackers looked at each other in panic. "Oh no, weren't we supposed to omit the cocoon?"

"We can't omit it now, it'll raise too many eyebrows," Hacker Two interjected. "On the other hand...the master will not be happy with us."

The dust cloud cleared, revealing Niebel, who stood with scrapes around his ankles and his clothes tattered in some places. The cocoon and—strangely—the hat remained perfectly intact.

"What's the matter?" Chelia challenged. "Having second thoughts about hurting a girl?"

"And here I was, thinking I could avoid Obaba's punishment if I lost," the ninja sighed as he reached into his side bag and pulled out a small figurine half the size of his thumb and a smoke bomb.

"It's better to face things head on," Rogue smirked.

"Yes."

The former guild mates stared each other down. Rogue looked like he was thinking of the different ways he could murder his opponent. Feet kicked against the ground, and the two went at it. Rogue sent an uppercut at Dobengal, only for the latter to block it.

"Rogue seems to hold some sort of grudge against Dobengal," Yajima said to Ooba. "Do you know why?"

"I might, but not for one second do I want this to go public. I don't want Lamia Scale to be famous for some triangle," the old lady grumbled. She pulled Yajima aside, away from the microphones. "Lyon and Chelia said that he used to like this girl from Mermaid Heel, only she didn't return his feelings. However, the girl liked that Saber my ninja's fighting with, and the Saber liked her back."

"Ah." Yajima nodded in understanding. "So it's a simple fight between unrequited and returned love."

Ooba snorted as they took their seats again. "You say simple...however, the look in their eyes tell another story."

"Give it up!" Rogue shouted as they pulled themselves up. "You know you don't stand a chance with that arm!"

"That's why I have this!" Dobengal tossed the figurine into the space between them. The figurine glowed brightly, and it grew in size. Within seconds, an iron giant armed with a sword and shield stood before Rogue. Five translucent lines of light jutted from its back, leading back to its caster.

"Now that's something I haven't seen since your former days in Sabertooth," Rogue noted with distaste. "The Puppeteer."

The puppet giant raised its sword and swung it down; the force of the action was enough to force Rogue back. The Shadow Dragon Slayer gritted his teeth. "Shadow Dragon's Slash!" The giant blocked his spell with its shield, but Rogue did manage to dent it. The puppet advanced on him and used its shield to send Rogue crashing against a large tree. Rogue glared at Dobengal; there was no way he would allow an ex-saber to overpower him.

You pathetic excuse of a Dragon Slayer! A voice scolded Rogue. Confused, the Shadow Dragon Slayer looked around for the source of the voice. Not for a second did he believe it to be his opponent's nor Sasori's. You're actually letting this failure of a mage put you to shame? Are you forgetting what he did to Glacia Patin?

His hands balled into fists. "I haven't forgotten, but if you would be so kind as to reveal yourself—"

Down here, fool! You look like an idiot talking to yourself! The voice chided. Rogue took a careful look at the ground. What he saw almost made him jolt in surprise: His own shadow reflected his actions, a red eye identical to his own on the right side of the shadow's "face" watched him carefully. There you go. It's me, your shadow!

Rogue nearly gaped at his shadow. "What are you?"

Easy, his shadow smirked. I'm you. Rather, the dark side of you.

"What do you want with me?"

Need I spell it out? I'll lend you some of my power. Now kill the traitor.

Rogue laughed it off. "Preposterous. I can take him without you."

Lector sweated as he looked at Vóreia and Frosch. "Um...is there a reason Rogue is talking to himself?"

"I thought he was talking to the ground?" Vóreia spoke up.

"No way!" Lector defended, pointing his paw at the Lacrima Vision. "Look, he may have developed anger issues, but he didn't go that over the edge!"

"Fro agrees!"

Preposterous? The shadow repeated with a mocking tone. Preposterous...that Glacia died at the hands of the man before you? That struck a nerve with Rogue. Remember how agonized you were, and still are. Remember how angry you were at seeing Glacia's killer return the first day. How furious you were when Mizuno dared to trick you with a duplicate, and succeeded the second time.

Shut up, Rogue thought, holding his head as his shadow's voice clawed at his mind over and over.

And then Niebel Glacien waltzed in on the third day, cold and merciless to everyone who stood in his way, his shadow crooned darkly. You and Niebel are alike in more ways than one: you want vengeance. You both want to avenge her death, even if the entire world has to go to hell in a basket to do it!

Rogue groaned, his head in pain from the inner turmoil between his own will and the shadow's. The crowd watched on in confusion, wondering what was going on. Even Sasori and Dobengal were unsure of what was conspiring.

"Is this really the same man who promised me a head?" Sasori murmured. "Now I'm wondering which one he meant, Dobengal's or his own."

Annihilate them...everyone. Didn't you believe that they deserved all along?

"Get...out..." The dark-haired man choked on his own breath as his will crumbled under his shadow.

Don't think of it as murder. It's more...retribution.

A large shadow rose from behind Rogue, engulfing him with its darkness. My power...is now yours.

Glacia skidded to a halt as agonized screams rung through the late afternoon.

"Found ya, ice bastard!" Glacia hit the ground just as Natsu attempted a flaming, flying side kick at her. He crashed into the ground, creating a large crater with smoke rising from the hole. The girl peeked over the edge of the hole, causing Natsu to pull himself up and glare at her. Glacia jolted and turned back, running as fast as her feet could carry her.

"Get back here!" Natsu gave pursuit, flames burning in his wake. "This is for Wendy: Fire Dragon's Roar!"

Glacia jumped out of the way as a flame burst rushed past her.

"Wait," Lisanna noticed. "Isn't Chelia—?"

"Wasn't Chelia fighting Niebel?" Sherry asked.

"She is...isn't she?' Yuka said nervously.

"You guys don't know?!" Toby screamed.

"Something's going on." Two separate fights were displayed on a Lacrima Vision: one with Chelia and Niebel, the other with Natsu and Glacia. "Why does it look like Natsu and Chelia are fighting the same person?"

"If I recall correctly, the one with the gold-buttoned jacket is from Mermaid Heel," Yajima said. "Without a doubt, the one Chelia is fighting must be Niebel."

"So if Chelia is fighting Niebel," Ooba started.

"Why does Natsu think that girl is Niebel?" Happy sweated at the Fire Dragon Slayer's idiocy.

"Unless the one Fairy Tail is fighting with is—" Vóreia said.

"Lu-chan!" Levy exclaimed. Lucy hobbled in with Porlyusica, with the former's mid-section bandaged tightly. The blue-haired girl tackle/hugged her best friend while crying, "I thought you were a goner!"

"L-Levy-chan, n-not so tight," Lucy gasped. Levy immediately let go of Lucy, realizing that she had squeezed her friend's stomach.

"You're lucky the scorpion had slow-acting venom," Porlyusica informed. "Any scorpion of that size would kill its victims within seconds. You were lucky to have even survived."

Bickslow lifted his visor a bit to inspect the scenes before them. "Damn, that's tricky. Not enough to fool me, though."

"Something wrong?" Evergreen questioned.

"Not only do those share the same appearance, but they have the same magic," Bickslow said, putting the visor back in place. "The same magical signature. No wonder Natsu thinks it's Niebel: he's confused. But if he can get the cap off, he should snap back to his senses."

Glacia skidded for the second time: just up ahead were her team-mate and Sting fighting it out. Her team-mate met her eyes, then looked behind Glacia. The girl whipped her head around to see Natsu just feet away from her. "Nowhere to go, kid," Natsu challenged.

Glacia did the only thing she could to taunt him: she stuck her tongue out at the Fire Dragon Slayer. Roaring in frustration, Natsu charged at the girl, thinking he was charging at Niebel. Glacia moved out of the way so that Natsu soared past her.

At the same time, the Mermaid Heel witch vaulted over Sting using his head as the fulcrum. "Hey!" Sting roared indignantly. In response, Glacia's team-mate kicked Sting in the back. The force of the kick made Sting collide with another flying object: Natsu.

Sting somehow head butted Natsu, making the fire specialist grunt in pain. "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" Sting dodged it and aimed for his stomach again, this time harder than his unintended headbutt.

They never noticed the Mermaid Heel duo running off in opposite directions.

With a mighty sweep of his arm, Rogue pushed the iron puppet towards the cliff face. Parts of the cliff crumbled and buried the puppet; unfortunately, Sasori could feel the damage from where he was. "Oi, can you at least be gentle?" he muttered, regaining his footing. Sasori knew what Dragon Force looked like; but what Rogue was in was not Dragon Force.

"Kukukuku..." Rogue chuckled in a voice unlike his own; this voice was darker, more evil...and cold. "My strength is at your command, Rogue."

Both Dobengal and Sasori noticed the change in Rogue's demeanor and his speech. "Who are you?' the former asked, knowing that whatever possessed Rogue had to be intelligent.

The possessed Rogue looked up, an evil sneer on his face as he met his opponent's eyes. "Have you really forgotten? It's me, Rogue."

"What—?" Rogue appeared in front of Dobengal and delivered a punch. His adversary, however, teleported out of the way and reappeared in the middle of the field. "If that's how you want to be..." The ninja produced three figurines and tossed them; they landed on their feet and expanded in size. "Champion's Guard!" Three armored metal giants stood before Rogue: one gold, another silver, and the final bronze.

"It's official: He's lost it."

Sasori looked behind himself to find half of the Imperial Guardians gathered. "Thought we'd sit back and watch," Jigumo explained, falling on his rear to do just that.

"So this is Rogue Cheney's darkness," Avian murmured, recalling Niebel's speech on the fourth night.

"Shadow Dragon's Roar!"

The metal giants locked shields and pushed up; the burst of shadows struck the shield wall, but the giants stood proudly, refusing to budge.

"Wait, where's Rogue?" Jigumo interjected. The other Imperial Guardians blinked in surprise; indeed, Rogue was nowhere to be found.

A large, swirling vortex-shaped shadow formed under the metal giants. The puppets struggled to escape but the shadow pulled them into endless darkness.

"Over there?" Dobengal pulled out a clear orb—

"Too late," Rogue's voice hissed from behind. The ninja turned around in time to see Rogue leap from his shadow. "Shadow Dragon's Slash!"

"Gah!"

Makarov swallowed in fear. "That must be..."

"Yes," Mavis agreed. "He's been possessed."

The ex-saber swung his arm out, only to pass through a mass of shadows where Rogue had been. Rogue's fist flew, but Dobengal caught it and tried to flip him onto his back. Just before he managed to get Rogue flat on his back, the ninja felt two hands grab his wrists and pull his arms back while a foot forced him to his knees.

Quite the foul magic, Mavis admitted reluctantly. And the likes of which I've never seen before!

"Your arms..." Rogue clenched his opponent's wrists tighter as he twisted Dobengal's arms; the ninja bit his lip, refusing to give Rogue the satisfaction of his pain. "You must be...very attached to them," he mocked.

"That vision from before!" Charle cried in recognition.

...the Shadow Dragon Slayer, Rogue. He was forcing someone to their knees, holding their arms behind themselves with a foot on the person's back. A sadistic glint in his eyes, black scale-like designs on his face...his foot came down on the person's back as his hands yanked the victim's arms out...

"He's going to dislocate his arms!" Yuka exclaimed in a horrified trauma.

Frosch watched the Lacrima Vision with fearful eyes. Rogue's eyes were dark crimson, filled with smug victory and hate polished off with a sadistic glint.

With a triumphant smirk, Rogue put his foot down on his opponent's back; his grip on the ninja's wrists tightened as he pulled out Dobengal's arms.

CRACK!

Even the bravest of men winced at the scene and the sound that followed. Chapati's wig slipped off from the accumulated sweat; Yajima shook his head, an ugly grimace on his face; Ooba blanched in color, several hairs came free of her bun. In the stands, Sabertooth laughed, much to the disgust of everyone else. Even Vóreia recoiled in dread.

"...Who are you?" Frosch asked shakily, no longer able to find his partner and friend in the monster he became.

Sasori covered his eyes. "Maybe that wasn't my best call," he muttered. "Maybe I shouldn't have left an old buddy alone with a demon incarnate."

Jigumo sucked in a breath. "Damn, he took that without screaming. His lip has gotta be bloody. On the other hand, Rogue could give us a run for our money."

"...In his deranged dreams," Sasori said simply.

Rogue threw his adversary aside, watching with relish as Dobengal landed roughly on his back. "Without your arms, you can't use magic. It's my win."

Sabertooth 68P

"I promised Sasori your head," Rogue sneered. "Shadow Dragon's—!"

A dark figure moved in between Rogue and Dobengal with their arms spread wide and their back to the latter. Rogue ceased his spell to take in the newcomer's appearance: short white hair topped off with a wool cap, one visible blue eye, a dark blue gold-buttoned jacket over a loose light shirt, oval-patterned pants and husky boots.

"Wait a sec." Jigumo rubbed his eyes. "Is that—?"

"Glacia?" Dobengal asked uncertainly, thinking he was hallucinating. Glacia nodded without turning her head, all while glaring at Rogue disapprovingly.

The possessed Dragon Slayer laughed. "This is your doing, isn't it, Mizuno?"

"Mizuno?" Sasori asked telepathically.

"Right now, I'm watching Niebel get his butt kicked by that Lamia girl," Mizuno answered. "She's really whipping him. I can't get anywhere near them."

"There's one thing I don't understand," Avian noticed. "Why would Glacia protect her murderer and turn against Rogue?"

"...Get Niebel over here," Sasori decided.

"What?" The Imperial Guardians exclaimed.

"Niebel will only give up the Dragon Lacrima willingly if he sees Glacia in danger. Don't you see?" Sasori motioned a hand towards the scene below. "Just like how Glacia would never put Niebel in harm's way; Niebel would go against the entire world to keep Glacia from the afterlife, even if he had to go against the might of heaven and the armies of hell to do it!"

Avian and Jigumo looked at each skeptically, causing Sasori to sigh tiredly. "Get him over here now!" he screamed.

Unable to refuse a direct order, Avian rushed away while Jigumo stayed behind. "Why is Glacia acting this way?" he murmured.

Sasori tilted his head towards his twin. "Your little friend told you, didn't he? How Glacia wanted to remain dead than return to life; how she hated her previous life so much, she eventually lost the will to live."

"He's the one who will hurt Sissy the most once she steps foot outside."

"I finally see what Niebel meant," Sasori said. "Dobengal was the one who granted Glacia's wish: to be free of the chains of life. But the one who will hurt Glacia the most...The man who will attack his love interest blindly...is Rogue."

The scorpion threw his head back and laughed maniacally at the irony. "This is even better than Mizuno's cheesy soap operas; Avian's pathetic plays!"

"But...is it really you?" The ninja asked. In response, Glacia removed her eye patch and let it fall to the ground. Blood stained the patch that once covered her eye.

Meanwhile, Niebel's left eye throbbed. The Imperial Guardian held his eye in reaction when the strangest thing happened.

In his right eye, he could see Chelia coming at him. But with his left eye...

His left eye showed him a deranged Rogue with scale-like designs on his face looking at him in utter disgust.